WVU reveals 2019 women's soccer schedule

The Mountaineers’ 18-match slate features 10 teams that qualified for the 2018 NCAA Tournament, including meetings against a pair of 2018 College Cup qualifiers in the first month of the season. In total, WVU will kick against four teams that advanced to the 2018 NCAA Tournament Fourth Round: Stanford (College Cup), Georgetown (College Cup), Penn State (Fourth Round) and Baylor (Fourth Round).

“As promised annually, we have put together another challenging schedule, and we believe this year may be our toughest test yet,” Mountaineer coach Nikki Izzo-Brown said. “These matches will show this team where we stand nationally. We will have a young squad in 2019, and this slate will show us where we need to develop as we progress toward Big 12 play.

“This season is all about development, and this schedule should help ensure that we are playing our best at the end of the year. We’re going to grow into the best we can be in 2019.”

The Mountaineers will play 11 matches at Dick Dlesk Soccer Stadium this season, including five against Big 12 Conference opponents.

WVU opens the season in Morgantown against Duquesne on Thursday, Aug. 22, at 7 p.m. Three days later, the Mountaineers will kick against Stanford, the 2017 National Champion, on Sunday, Aug. 25, at noon, at Jeffrey Field in University Park, Pennsylvania.

The Mountaineers continue their season with a second consecutive split weekend, playing host to High Point on Friday, Aug. 30, at 7 p.m., before traveling to Charlottesville, Virginia, for a match at Virginia on Sunday, Sept. 1, at 2 p.m.

WVU’s marquee home nonconference match is on Friday, Sept. 6, as the Mountaineers will face Penn State at 7 p.m. at Dick Dlesk Stadium. The following week, WVU will kick against Stony Brook in Morgantown on Sept. 12 at 7 p.m. before traveling to Washington, D.C., for a match at Georgetown on Sept. 15 at 1 p.m.

The Mountaineers close their nonconference slate with home matches against Fairleigh Dickinson on Sept. 20, at 7 p.m., and Bowling Green on Sept. 22, at 1 p.m.

WVU, who claimed its 17th conference title with three wins at the 2018 Big 12 Soccer Championship, opens its league slate against Iowa State on Friday, Sept. 27, at 7 p.m., at Dick Dlesk Stadium.

A swing through Texas follows, as the Mountaineers kick at Baylor, the reigning Big 12 regular-season champion, on Oct. 3, at 8 p.m. ET, before facing Texas in Austin on Sunday, Oct. 6, at 2 p.m. ET.

The Mountaineers return to Morgantown for a three-match homestand. First, WVU faces Texas Tech on Thursday, Oct. 10, at 7 p.m. The following week, the Mountaineers play Oklahoma State on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 7 p.m., before kicking against Oklahoma on Sunday, Oct. 20, at 1 p.m.

WVU concludes its road schedule with a pair of matches in Kansas. The Mountaineers face the Jayhawks in Lawrence on Thursday, Oct. 24, at 8 p.m. ET, then make their second-ever trip to Manhattan for a match at Kansas State on Sunday, Oct. 27, at 2 p.m. ET.

The Mountaineers wrap-up their regular-season slate against TCU on Thursday, Oct. 31, at 7 p.m., at Dick Dlesk Stadium.

“The Big 12 Conference ranked No. 2 in the RPI last year; life will not get any easier for us once we move into conference play,” Izzo-Brown added. “Challenging and grueling – this conference schedule is so tough. Six Big 12 teams qualified for the NCAA Tournament last season, and it can certainly happen again this year.”

The Big 12 Soccer Championship opens with quarterfinal matches on Sunday, Nov. 3, at Swope Soccer Village in Kansas City, Missouri. The semifinal matches will follow on Friday, Nov. 8, and the championship match will be held on Sunday, Nov. 10. The final three championship matches also will be held at Swope Soccer Village.

First-round matches of the 2019 NCAA Tournament will be held Nov. 15-17 on campus sites. The 2019 NCAA Women’s College Cup will be held Dec. 6-8 at Avaya Stadium in San Jose, California.